Tag: Bitcoin

“Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance”

Crypto hedge funds are part of a larger group of crypto funds, including those based on venture capital and private equity. Grouped together, there are currently 622 crypto funds across all categories, 303 of those being crypto hedge funds, which represent assets of less than $4 billion, according to the research. Half of the funds are based in the U.S., multiple launches have been seen in Australia, China, Malta, Switzerland, The Netherlands and the U.K. this 2018. 2017 was a great year to start a crypto hedge fund. Great returns!Is it hard to perform in bull markets?
2018, on the other hand, has seen a significant downturn in many of the cryptocurrencies. Many of these coins make up a strong percentage of most of the crypto hedge funds. So-called ‘diversified portfolios’, or ‘risk mediation in coin-bundles’ underperformed greatly. Investors money is still tied-up unless sold at loss. With YTD 2018 Returns of -56.78%, investors consider alternative option within this disruptive, high growth technology space.

Historical Monthly Performance (%)

Reasons?
Cryptocurrencies are speculative in value.
By now, most should know that the majority of token and coins stand and fall with Bitcoin performance due to strong correlations. Additionally, with an average of 50% of the total crypto market share, Bitcoin is certainly the dominant driver in overall behavior. Furthermore, crypto is a young asset class and will likely continue to be volatile as it matures. Even the volatility of equities, currently at 13.4% from the VIX, is completely dwarfed by that of Bitcoin, coming in at 70% (down from 150% earlier in the year).
Total market capitalization rose from $18.3B at the start of 2017 to $613B by the start of 2018 — over 3000% growth. The market for cryptocurrencies is rapidly changing, presenting huge opportunities for investors, and in turn, investment managers. But, individuals looking to capitalize on the inefficiencies of the market by offering interests in actively managed hedge funds need to be wary of and disclose the associated risk.

Crypto Correlation Matrix

Bitcoin Dominance

Volatility: 12th Apr 2018 — A move of $1200 within an hour

Bitcoin Crashes (or bubble bursts or correction)

Some context for the know-it-all

And now….?

Due to the 70–90% corrections from all-time highs in 2017, a majority of crypto funds will most likely not make any performance fee this year, despite their “complex hedging strategies” or automatically re-balanced functions.
This means they have three (no, 4) options for the rest of the 2018 fiscal year. They can:

Raise New Capital,

Ride the market out and hope 2019 is better,

Close the fund

or change strategy.

“Cryptocurrency cannot be analyzed in the same manner as traditional assets.”

There is no physical item or stake in the startup or company to which the price is tied. The valuation of your token is based on the expectation of future demand and is thus very susceptible to changes in sentiment.
Hedge funds are the most common type of digital asset fund, but venture capital crypto funds are launching quickly, and existing tech/FinTech VC firms are expanding investments into blockchain startups and launching their own blockchain funds. Investing in technology startups — instead of solely relying on price appreciation of existing crypto-assets — serving investors the most disruptive, high growth market, worth trillions in the future.

2019: The year of ?

We are approaching the end of January and there have been plenty of predictions of what this year could mean for cryptocurrencies. Some claimed that this could be the year for security token offerings (STO), some say it could be the year mass adoption will finally take place. My thoughts on the matter is, 2019 could be the year when regulations finally build an infrastructure for cryptocurrencies or blockchain-based projects to thrive. The road is long but nothing can stop innovation. It is the single most consistent growth humanity has offer since maybe the dawn of time.Source: Crypto Fund Research, Eurekahedge, Sifr Data, Alpaca Securities

About The Author

Iliya Zaki is Head of Business Development and Marketing for Moonwhale Ventures, a Singapore-based consultancy firm offering Blockchain Business Consulting services and also building a blockchain-based Investment Platform.

Crypto News & Analysis

Coinbase raises US $300 million but will remain a private company. Coinbase is the most popular cryptocurrency exchange in the USA. It may also be one of the top 3 cryptocurrency exchanges in the world. There were reports and rumors that this crypto exchange would become a public entity in the next few weeks. But the President of Coinbase, Asiff Hirji says no, “There’s not going to be an IPO any time soon.”
Coinbase successfully raised $300 million through private Series E funding. Many analysts and journalists speculated that an Initial Public Offering (IPO) would be coming shortly after. According to the Coinbase President, their predictions were way off the mark. Mr. Hirji made his remarks, on the Crypto Trader Show, saying at this point in time, “We (Coinbase) have so much to do,” and other comments regarding how the company needed to grow. He described the most recent funding as a pre-IPO funding. Although his remark did intimate that an IPO is coming. The answer to the question, when, is still unknown.
Mr. Hirji said that of the 3,000+ cryptocurrencies publicly traded 300 of them are potentially investment worthy. Coinbase is active in only seven cryptos. Mr Hirji stated that the revenue stream of the exchange needs to increase. He continued his statement saying Coinbase should be able to facilitate trading in at least 200 or 300 of the most investment worthy cryptos. This is just one of the things on a list of many things to do before Coinbase would consider going public. Mr Hirji felt the accomplishment of the company’s goals could take place within the time frame of one year. This could also be the new time frame for their IPO announcement. As with the progress of many other factors relating to the advancement of the cryptocurrency markets, we will all just have to wait and see.

Forex News & Analysis

Bitcoin continues to hold the line. The crypto currency continues to maintain a value above its lower level of resistance, near US $6,200, throughout this week. The United States Dollar gained value against Bitcoin this week. The USD started the week pairing with Bitcoin at an exchange rate of $6402/ 1 Bitcoin. The pair ended the week exchanging at a rate of $6365 / 1 Bitcoin. The USD recorded a 0.58% increase in value when paired with Bitcoin by the weeks end.
The USD index (.DXY) compares the USD to 6 globally dominant currencies. The USD lost marginal ground when compared to its global counterparts towards the end of the week. The .DXY index recorded a value of 96.58 at the beginning of the week. The Index closed at 96.50 recording a 0.08% loss in value by the week’s end.
The GBP gained ground against the USD from the previous week. The dollar ended the week exchanging with the GBP at $1.2971 gaining 0.01% from the previous trading day. The GBP may climb higher as optimism about a smooth Brexit has been reported by the media. The Mexican Peso(MXN) continues to show strength in the marketplace. The MXN ended the week marginally stronger when compared to the GBP, exchanging with the GBP at 25.9731 Pesos / 1 GBP a 0.01% increase in value from the previous trading day.

Crypto Futures News & Analysis

A landmark ruling by the Chinese court propels Bitcoin closer to the hands of mainstream Chinese citizens. The Shenzhen Court of International Arbitration has ruled in favor of Bitcoin. The court has determined that Bitcoin can be viewed as property. Furthermore it is now officially legal for Bitcoin to be accepted as payment for goods and services by Chinese merchants. This event can be looked upon as a milestone accomplishment for the advancement of Bitcoin and cryptocurrency.
Prior to this court ruling, the Chinese government had effectively banned most Chinese citizens from transactions involving Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, within the borders China. The significance of Bitcoin becoming legal within China is huge. China has the world’s largest population of consumers and is the world’s #2 economy. Any portion of the Chinese population added to the pool of investors already involved in Bitcoin, will add more liquidity and market presence to the blossoming crypto market.
The Arbitrators decision centered around these fundamental principles of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.

Bitcoin has intrinsic economic value,

It can be controlled by the owner,

It has the characteristics of a property,

Paying with or holding Bitcoin is not illegal.

Many have speculated concerning the reason the government imposed the ban in the first place. Some say the ban was imposed to prevent Bitcoin from devaluing the Chinese Yuan. Others speculate that it needed to be controlled by the right people before it was given to the masses. Be that as it may, Bitcoin will be able to be used by all Chinese citizens while they are at home in their living rooms, at some point in the near future.
Bitcoin continues to demonstrate stability. Bitcoin has maintained a value above its lower resistance threshold of US $6,200 for another week. Ending the week at $6365 / 1 Bitcoin

Crypto Stocks & Analysis

IBM is in the headlines once again. IBM goes all in at the poker table. Rolling the dice and proposing to purchase Red Hat Inc. for US $24 billion.
Red Hat describe themselves as a:

“Provider of open source software solutions to develop and offer storage technologies, virtualization, cloud, mobile, operating system, management, and middleware to various enterprises worldwide. It offers infrastructure-related solutions, such as Red Hat Enterprise Linux, an operating system platform that runs on hardware for use in hybrid cloud environments; Red Hat Enterprise Virtualization, a software solution that allows customers to utilize and manage a common hardware infrastructure to run multiple operating systems and applications; and Red Hat Satellite, a system management offering that helps to deploy, scale, and manage in hybrid cloud environments. ” Yahoo Finance

Most analysts agree the move leaves IBM in a poor financial situation. IBM will be short on cash and will be wishing on the next shooting star, hoping the CEO made the right decision. Its win or lose for Big Blue, the CEO Ginni Rometty has all the chips on the table. She’s hoping the combination of blockchain patents owned by IBM and their new found presence in cloud computing will ring the bell and answer her prayers with a solid revenue source and an end to the 7 years of negative earnings under her leadership.
A sinister dark cloud hangs over this deal casting shadows of uncertainty. Red Hat’s stock price was last quoted at $172.24, well below the $190 IBM has proposed to pay to own the company. Analysts are skeptical the deal will happen at the inflated price of $190 a share. Moreover whether the deal happens or not IBM is obligated to fork over $1billion to Red Hat.
Ms. Rometty claims the deal will make IBM the number 1 hybrid cloud provider. A hybrid cloud consists of cloud data storage and computing capabilities. Rometty has bet her continuance as IBM’s CEO on the combination of blockchain technology combined with hybrid cloud services. Investors and analysts are doubtful this combination can put IBM back in the black.

This week’s Biggest Winners in Cryptocurrencies

1) +120.69% CloakCoin (CLOAK) Started the week at $2.765 Ended the week at $6.102
2) +114.32% Telcoin (TEL) Started the week at $0.00049953 Ended the week at $0.00107058
3) +44.14% Dentacoin (DCN) Started the week at $0.00021880 Ended the week at $0.00031537
4) +39.73% TokenPay (TPAY) Started the week at $1.178 Ended the week at $1.646
5) +32.26% SirinLabs (SRN) Started the week at $0.0747 Ended the week at $0.0988
6) +31.29% Agoras Token (AGRS) Started the week at $0.441 Ended the week at $0.579
7) +29.59% BOScoin (BOS) Started the week at $0.0507 Ended the week at $0.0657
8) +27.87% SelfKey (KEY) Started the week at $0.00633644 Ended the week at $0.00810235
9) +27.53% Mainframe (MFT) Started the week at $0.00846874 Ended the week at $0.0108
10) +26.97% Republic Protocol (REN) Started the week at $0.0330 Ended the week at $0.0419
11) +21.77% Odem (ODE) Started the week at $0.147 Ended the week at $0.179
12) +19.11% Basic Attention Token (BAT) Started the week at $0.246 Ended the week at $0.293
13) +17.86% Po.et (POE) Started the week at $0.0112 Ended the week at $0.0132
14) +14.73% ChainLink (LINK) Started the week at $0.448 Ended the week at $0.514
15) +12.75% Centrality (CENNZ) Started the week at $0.0408 Ended the week at $0.0460

Crypto Chart of the Week

CloakCoin (CLOAK)
Chart Courtesy of Coinlib
CloakCoin is an open-source blockchain platform that puts their focus on speed and anonymity in cryptocurrency trading. Its PoW (Proof of Work) block reward is currently 496 coins and stops within seven days while its PoS (Proof of Stake) gives ROI of 6% annual interest. The platform promises fast transactions, with a block limit time of 60 seconds. The transactions are also untraceable thanks to the platform’s onion-routing privacy that is set to default. Security is state of the art due to the d-to-end encryption that enable nodes to avoid traffic analysis. The system also uses 25 hops, that utilize symmetric RSA encryption with ECDH key as a back-up.

Upcoming ICOs

2TF (2TF) Sale Starts November 2 Sale Ends November 24 / A mobile global payment platform with decentralized principles where users transact directly through the use of stable price cryptocurrencies and smart contracts
CryptoCasher (CRR) Sale Starts November 2 Sale Ends March 2, 2019 / Allowing buying or selling of cryptos for cash safely and quickly with a 3rd party escrow service
Bitdollar Fund (BTD) Sale Starts November 3 Sale Ends December 29 / The world’s first collectively managed fund
ProxiShares (PRX) Sale Starts November 4 Sale Ends November 20 / An industrial-level asset location, surveillance and monitoring software suite on the Ethereum blockchain
ArtPro (APT) Sale Starts November 5 Sale Ends December 14 / making it easy for anyone to buy and sell art over the web
Aurum (AURUM) Sale Starts November 5 Sale Ends December 31 / An online marketplace facilitating the auction of jewelry and watches with an opportunity of appraisal by the Aurum service centers specialists
Bonafi (BONA) Sale Starts November 5 Sale Ends December 23 / Authenticating the Supply Chain Using Blockchain Technology
Geeba (GBA) Sale Starts November 5, 2018 Sale Ends January 2, 2019 / Developing a decentralized delivery ecosystem that enables businesses to operate deliveries with autonomous vehicle and smart hubs
RainCheck (RAIN) Sale Starts November 5 Sale Ends December 5 / Created to influence and measure the high level of online product discovery/research and to connect those findings with the corresponding in-store sales transaction
TrustaBit (TAB) Sale Starts November 5, 2018 Sale Ends January 5, 2019 / Using blockchain technology with smart contracts to automatically issue flight vouchers to passengers when their flights are delayed
Sentigraph.io (EMOT) Sale Starts November 9 Sale Ends December 10 / An innovative Early Stage Startup with an objective of helping businesses and individuals gain unique insights, and make good decisions based on the feelings of customers or peers in a social network like Twitter

Crypto News & Analysis

Sony has formally announced their plans to develop a wireless crypto wallet. Sony Corp is letting the world know how serious they are about being leaders in the sale of commercial products that will be utilizing blockchain technology. Plans to build the state of the art hardware wallet is where it all begins with Sony. Hardware wallets will be where the wealth of the 21st century will be stored. And Sony wants to have a strong presence near the wealth of all cryptocurrency owners.The hardware wallet that Sony (SNE) plans to produce will be the first of its kind. It will be wireless and portable. Currently all hardware wallets need to be attached to a computer through a USB cable in order to function. Sony’s new contactless crypto wallet will be configured using IC card technology from Sony. Sony has described the technology in a press release this way, “Sony CSL (Computer Science Laboratories) has developed a contactless IC card type hardware wallet which includes mutual authentication/encrypted communication technology by applying Sony’s expertise in contactless IC card technology cultivated over many years. The IC card type hardware wallet is small, portable and useful, unlike typical existing hardware wallets that connect to PCs via USB.”The crypto wallet will be able to hold and function with a variety of cryptocurrencies. The IC technology behind it will enable the wallet to use private keys for a multitude of applications yet to be seen.In Sony’s press release it is described as “an infrastructure technology with multiple possible applications.”Sony has not announced when the wallet will go into production or when it will be available to be purchased. What we do know is that earlier this year, Japanese financial services group, SBI Holdings, purchased a 40 percent stake in the cryptocurrency hardware wallet company CoolBitX based in Taiwan.

Forex News & Analysis

BTC / USDChart Courtesy of Trading ViewBitcoin continues to demonstrate stability. The crypto currency has maintained a value above its lower level of resistance, near US $6,200, throughout the week. The United States Dollar remained stable against Bitcoin as well this week. The USD started the week pairing with Bitcoin at an exchange rate of $6401/ 1 Bitcoin. The pair ended the week exchanging at the same rate of $6401 / 1 Bitcoin. The USD recorded a 0.0% change in value when paired with Bitcoin by the weeks end. The USD index (.DXY) compares the USD to 6 globally dominant currencies. The USD gained ground when compared to its global counterparts towards the end of the week. The .DXY index recorded a value of 96.01 at the beginning of the week. The Index closed at 96.32 recording a 0.323% gain in value by the week’s end. Many analysts believe the gain in value recorded by the USD are a result of the better than expected 3rd quarter Gross Domestic Product value. Amidst new found woes surrounding Brexit, the GBP lost ground against the USD from the previous week. The dollar ended the week exchanging with the GBP at $1.2831 compared to last weeks close of $1.3252 losing 3.28% from the previous week. While the Australian Dollar (AUD) lost a slim advantage over the Japanese Yen by the close of the week. The AUD ended the week marginally weaker when compared to the JPY just one week ago exchanging with the JPY at ¥79.36 / 1 AUD versus ¥80.01 / 1 AUD the prior week a 0.81% decrease in value from the previous week.

Crypto Futures News & Analysis

The predictions of Bitcoin and cryptocurrency gains over the next 5 years continue to pour in. The latest prediction comes from MarketsandMarkets. MarketsandMarkets has forecast a 6.18% annual growth rate for the cryptocurrency market to 2024. The analysts who published the report conclude that the driving forces behind this consistent rate of growth will be:

Growth in venture capital investments,

Increases in distributed ledger technology (DLT) transparency,

Fluctuations in monetary regulations,

And high remittances in developing countries.

The panel of analysts that compiled the report acknowledge the implementation of blockchain technology in the financial industry. They give kudos to the functionality of blockchain technology applied to cross border payments and money transfers. They attribute their forecast of steady growth to innovations such as these. The analysts also give attention to the factors that will hinder the growth of the cryptocurrency market. Factors like:

The slow process of installing defined global regulations,

The lack of technical knowledge within the world’s population to understand cryptocurrency,

Security issues surrounding cryptocurrency exchange hacks,

Scaling issues,

and the lack of accessibility to the crypto market for people apprehensive and unfamiliar with the new technology and its devices.

The Team of analysts report that everyone of the issues they discovered are being dealt with by the crypto community. That was the fact that enabled them to predict continued growth within the crypto market.

Crypto Stocks & Analysis

Cryptocurrency, the blockchain, and stocks, how are these unique relationships evolving? One way to gauge how heavily some companies are involved in blockchain technology, is to find out how many patents they hold that involve the new technology. Envision IP, a law firm that specializes in intellectual property, has released a report disclosing what firms in America are in the group of top ten patent holders involving blockchain technology. It may come as a surprise to some to find out who they are. These firms and their stock value may move in the same direction as the cryptocurrency market, especially because they are both deeply involved in the same technology. The Envision IP Report claims that 1,045 patents involving blockchain technology were filed in the US by 478 owners. The report was released at the beginning of 2018. Most of the owners were entrepreneurial enterprises holding 1 or two patents per entity or individual. But the majority of patents were held by leading companies. Everyday names, with an extraordinary amount of assets and revenue that they manage. Accenture (ACN), Coinbase (a privately held firm) , Dell (DVMT), Fidelity Investments (privately held), Google (GOOGL), Ping An Insurance (PNGAY), Bitmain (IPO on the way), Intel (INTC), Visa (V), Sony (SNE), Tencent (TCEHY), China’s State Grid Corporation (government owned), and Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD) are some of the patent holders ranking in the top 10 according to the number of patents filed. The last reports available claimed they held about 20 or more patents each. Please bear in mind patent information isn’t public until 18 months after the filing in the US. So these ranking can change quickly. IBM (IBM) and MasterCard (MA) have been jockeying for a spot in the top 3 of patents held. It has been reported that IBM currently holds almost 100 blockchain technology patents. It has also been reported that Bank of America (BAC) held the most blockchain patents at one point in the year. And then we have Alibaba that has been reported as holding 10% of all the blockchain technology patents filed globally. These companies are on the 21st Money watch list. Their interaction and integration with blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies are being forged every moment of everyday in our 21st century. The 21st Money Team will keep you informed.

This week’s Biggest Winners in Cryptocurrencies

1) +360.19% PumaPay (PMA) Started the week at $0.00032011 Ended the week at $0.00147311

2) +55.75% Nexo (NEXO) Started the week at $0.113 Ended the week at $0.176

3) +51.95% Ravencoin (RVN) Started the week at $0.0308 Ended the week at $0.0468

4) +54.07% MobileGo (MGO) Started the week at $0.479 Ended the week at $0.738

5) +46.75% Revain (R) Started the week at $0.154 Ended the week at $0.226

6) +44.55% Veritaseum (VERI) Started the week at $28.44 Ended the week at $41.11

7) +49.56% GoCoin (GO) Started the week at $0.0458 Ended the week at $0.0685

Crypto Chart of the Week

PumaPay (PMA) ranks 175th on the list of cryptos ordered according to their market capitalization. PumaPay’s current market cap is $23,080,000. PumaPay describe themselves as developing an advanced billing infrastructure for merchants, allowing them to design flexible payment scenarios over the blockchain.$25,0816 worth of PMA changed hands October 26th at an average price of $0.0015.

Upcoming ICOs

HELIXHILLS (HILL) Sale Starts October 27, 2018 Sale Ends August 21, 2019 / Using blockchain infrastructure to help consumers, service providers, and professional consultants automate the algorithms for selecting business partners and concluding deals, to record interaction time and bill the relevant parties using corresponding tariffs, and provide instant loans to reliable users

TimberCoin (TMB) Sale Starts October 29 Sale Ends November 29 / A decentralized online platform based on the blockchain Ethereum that shall use the smart-contract system, combining advanced technologies in the area of finance and industrial production of one of the most demanded in the world market high-strength multilayer square-sawn lumber that is the veneer laminated, reliable, cost-effective, easy-to-use material for the construction of lightweight, environmentally friendly, heat-saving houses, agricultural, sports and other facilities

GGRocket (GGR) Sale Starts October 30 Sale Ends November 14 / A mechanism that utilizes big data and machine learning technology in order to create specified and personalized offers for each customer based on their preferences

PlayTrip (PLTC) Sale Starts October 30 Sale Ends November 15 / A mobile application that allows you to experience a tourist itinerary through the narration of a story

TITA Project (TTN) Sale Starts October 30 Sale Ends November 30 / Building a decentralized ecosystem powered by Blockchain technology for the buying and selling of locally/globally traded commodities and finished goods thereby setting up pedestals that enhance the financial systems of the communities where these commodities are produced

Volans (VOL) Sale Starts October 30 Sale Ends November 30 / A cryptocurrency payment system which is based on blockchain technology

Adult X Token (ADUX) Sale Starts October 31 Sale Ends November 30 / Offering an absolute, never seen before, “all – in – one solution” for the adult entertainment industry

Neogame (TKT) Sale Starts October 31 Sale Ends November 30 / Designed to disrupt the for-profit model of gambling

Nexxo (NEXXO) Sale Starts October 31 Sale Ends December 31 / The world’s first global blockchain-powered small business banking platform

Aeternum ICO (ALF) Sale Starts November 1 Sale Ends May 1, 2019 / This platform will be open to anyone owning Aeternum Token not just a select group of investors and no contribution will be too small to reap the return from deep science project realization

Alive Casino (AL) Sale Starts November 1 Sale Ends December 1 / Operating in such a way that allows online casinos to occupy a greater share of the gambling market

ALLCARE (ALCR) Sale Starts November 1, 2018 Sale Ends January 31, 2019 / Making company benefits like health care, insurance, training, and other perks accessible to all workers including contractual, freelancers and self-employed individuals

ASTRA (STAR) Sale Starts November 1 Sale Ends November 30 / Building a network of communities and computers (Astra Network) for discovery of scientific and social truths

AutoBay (ABX) Sale Starts November 1 Sale Ends December 15 / The first ecommerce platform based on the Ethereum blockchain that allows users to sell, buy and auction vehicles using cryptocurrencies as payment method

ClearAid (CAID) Sale Starts November 1, 2018 Sale Ends May 1, 2019 / A digital platform that aims to connect the non-profit community through an easy-to-use interface which allows full transparency and traceability of donations made on the blockchain

ComBox (CBP) Sale Starts November 1 Sale Ends November 30 / An international company, a developer and manufacturer of immersion cooling systems for industrial mining and for solving science-driven tasks

Cryptocoin Insurance (CCIN) Sale Starts November 1 Sale Ends December 27 / The first option exchange with the possibility of insuring deposits against falling prices

Cryptonity (XNY) Sale Starts November 1 Sale Ends December 31 / The combination of two words: Crypto and Community. Simple but strong and meaningful, the goal is to be an exchange that is respected by the Cryptocurrency Community

Filotech (FILO) Sale Starts November 1 Sale Ends December 31 / Featuring an open ecosystem with forthcoming APIs to enable service providers and entrepreneurs to easily integrate the services offered as part of Filo network

Gastro Advisor (FORK) Sale Starts November 1 Sale Ends December 16 / A platform for research, recommendation and booking of restaurants and clubs with an ERC20 token-based economy that connects users and restaurateurs with a p2p reward and benefit

Gemstra (GMS) Sale Starts November 1 Sale Ends November 30 / A blockchain-integrated ecosystem for the social selling economy

getFIFO (FFUEL) Sale Starts November 1 Sale Ends February 1, 2019 / A Live and Trading Fiat to Crypto Exchange based in the UK

GGPRO (GGP) Sale Starts November 1 Sale Ends January 1, 2019 / A blockchain platform that creates new opportunities for interaction between the gaming community, sponsors and game developers

Gric (GC) Sale Starts November 1 Sale Ends November 30 / Aiming to create a brand that will be a benchmark in the agricultural industry, removing imitation and food counterfeiting, bringing about transparency with the aid of blockchain, creating a vehicle for people to invest on real life agriculture and earn rewards on their investments

IAME Identity (IAM) Sale Starts November 1 Sale Ends November 5 / Building the first truly decentralised cross-blockchain identification system based on its proprietary sharding technology and consensus identification

Jibbit (JIB) Sale Starts November 1 Sale Ends December 15 / Creating an ecosystem network to connect the worldwide cannabis community with the crypto world (200m +)

karbon14 (K14) Sale Starts November 1 Sale Ends May 1, 2019 / Maintaining information that will be used to create the Proof of Life certificates, generating a unique hash that will be saved in a Smart Contract

Laccoin (LAC) Sale Starts November 1 Sale Ends November 30 / An Ethereum backed cryptocurrency that enables the banked, unbanked and underbanked individuals who are in Latin America and Caribbean region to send money, invest and send micro-loans to each other with their mobile wallet or web app ***** No Website ****

Litenett (LNC) Sale Starts November 1 Sale Ends November 5 / A social network and a large media resource with its own payment system

MinedBlock (MBTX) Sale Starts November 1 Sale Ends April 30, 2019 / Offering the resources from a large scale mining operation, in order to mine multiple coins without the need to buy, configure and maintain expensive mining equipment

Primex (PMX) Sale Starts November 1 Sale Ends December 23 / An advanced user-friendly platform, providing users anywhere in the world with unified electronic wallets for all of their cryptocurrency and fiat savings

SocialRemit (SRT) Sale Starts November 1, 2018 Sale Ends April 1, 2019 / A new platform designed to provide emerging projects with financial and technological tools based on blockchain and impact society in a positive way through a collaborative economy that aims to build decentralized autonomous platforms of high efficiency

Stacktical (DSLA) Sale Starts November 1 Sale Ends December 31 / A unique way to turn the performance failures of an online service into surprisingly gratifying experiences for its stakeholders

W12 (W12) Sale Starts November 1 Sale Ends December 12 / A tenfold improvement over existing centralized analogues, offering the market a transactional model with a commission of just 0.5% (instead of 4-20%) which can be integrated with existing platforms and enterprises on each available market

2TF (2TF) Sale Starts November 2 Sale Ends November 24 / A mobile global payment platform with decentralized principles where users transact directly through the use of stable price cryptocurrencies and smart contracts

CryptoCasher (CRR) Sale Starts November 2 Sale Ends March 2, 2019 / Allowing buying or selling of cryptos for cash safely and quickly with a 3rd party escrow service

Crypto News & Analysis

International Business Machines (IBM) has scheduled a demonstration of their own version of a blockchain based, global transfer, rapid payment platform. They have named it ‘The Blockchain World Wire'(BWW). Unlike Ripple’s xRapid platform, IBM’s system can handle cross border transactions with any cryptocurrency as a medium of exchange. Whereas it has been reported that the xRapid system is only able to handle cross-border payments using the XRP crypto.
Capitalism doesn’t work without competition. IBM’s BWW system will ensure that the price for the service remains competitive. IBM’s presence will also cause the cross-border payment and transfer systems to improve their technology. The competition is extremely healthy for the evolution of both platforms.
IBM plans to demonstrate the BWW platform during the Sibos 2018 convention. The convention is being held in Sydney, Australia from October 22 – 25th. IBM holds more patents involving blockchain technology than any other company in America. They currently hold 89 blockchain patents second to Alibaba which holds 90 patents. They also have managed to forge several lucrative relationships with leading food companies and retailers. Some of the companies on the list include, Nestlé, Tyson Foods, Golden State Foods, Wal-Mart Stores Inc., McCormick and Co., and Berkshire Hathaway’s, McLane Co..
IBM’s leadership role in blockchain solutions is clearly demonstrated. They proudly boast that their clientele consists of 97% of the world’s largest banks. They push their chest out farther and claim their mainframe processes 90% of all major credit card transactions. They then put their nose in the air when they claim they run 60% of all the world’s transactional systems. The addition of the BWW system fits right into this configuration.
The Payment system will be powered by the Stellar Lumens (XLM) platform. The XLM cryptocurrency has gained nearly 9% in value over the last 7 days. The last sale at the time of this writing took place at $0.236 per crypto coin.

Forex News & Analysis

The United States Dollar lost ground against Bitcoin this week. The USD started the week pairing with Bitcoin at an exchange rate of $6135/ 1 Bitcoin. The pair ended the week exchanging at a rate of $6396 / 1 Bitcoin. The USD lost a 4.25 % advantage over Bitcoin by the end of the week. Bitcoin continued to demonstrate stability this week. Bitcoin continues to hold steady maintaining a level above its lower resistance level of $6200.
The USD index (.DXY) compares the USD to 6 globally dominant currencies. The USD gained ground when compared to its global counterparts towards the end of the week. The .DXY index recorded a value of 95.06 at the beginning of the week. The Index closed at 95.64 recording a 0.579% gain in value by the end of the week. The dollar lost some momentum on the last trading day of the week. Many analysts believe the loss in momentum is due to the European Euro gaining value. The Euro’s gains may be a result of eased tensions of economic conflict between Italy and the European Union. This is not the first time economic woes have entered the relationship. Fears revolved around the idea that the Italian economy, the 3rd largest within the Union, is to big to fail. And a major bailout may have to be initiated. The GBP lost marginal value against the USD. After the news that Brexit was 90% done. The GPB ended the week Exchanging at $1.3069 with the USD, losing 0.01% from the previous trading day. While the Australian Dollar (AUD) lost marginal value compared with the Japanese Yen by the close of the week. The AUD ended the week weaker compared to the JPY exchanging with the JPY at ¥80.12 / 1 AUD a 0.01% decrease in value from the previous trading day.

Crypto Futures News & Analysis

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has launched a fintech hub. The purpose of this portal is to give SEC the ability to engage with companies involved with blockchain technology, artificial intelligence, and other digital investment instruments. The Finhub is the name the SEC has given it’s new division. The Finhub’s fearless leader will be Valerie A. Szczepanik, senior advisor for digital assets and innovations. She is also an associate director in the SEC’s Division of Corporate Finance. She will be assisted by representatives from other divisions and offices of the SEC who have expertise and experience in fintech.
The 21st Money Team has long held the position that the SEC was dragging its feet in regulating cryptos. The reason for the snail’s pace was because it needed to create the infrastructure to handle digital investment instruments. This was a necessary step towards moving the crypto market forward, and it has finally come to the United States. The Finhub Portal will enable users to easily engage with the SEC. Applicants are now able to easily ask specific questions of the agency. The Finhub portal also allows users to request and schedule meetings with the relevant SEC staff member.
It’s important to remember, that it was because of the SEC’s lack of resources, manpower, and oversight that provoked and enabled the 2008 financial crisis. You can be assured that everyone that sits behind a desk in that agency is not going to be a part of another financial disaster. The wait has been annoying for potential investors in crypto products. It’s unlike the US to lag behind in new technology and investment opportunities. But this time around the SEC is going to take its time and make sure they get it right.
The 21st Money team is confident the SEC will use the next few months to get the bugs out of the Finhub portal. Hopefully crypto investors can look forward to 2019 and the new investing opportunities it will bring. The regulatory body for cryptocurrencies and other digital investment instruments is in place in the US. 5G internet speeds have become available. Digitized data has been created with enormous monetary value. There are exciting times ahead for cryptos.

Crypto Stocks & Analysis

The crypto merchant bank Galaxy Digital (GLXY) began trading on the Toronto Venture Exchange (TSXV) August 1. Galaxy Digital is another first of its kind institution born from blockchain technology. One of the things that make this stock interesting are the people at the helm of the ship. Mike Novogratz and former Goldman Sachs Executive Director Richard Kim as Chief Operating Officer.
(GLXY.V) TSXV Currency in CAD
Chart Courtesy of Yahoo Finance
The stock had a rocky start on its debut day to the public, opening at CAD $2.75. This value is 45% lower than the IPO price of $5. The triumph of this new and innovative company being listed together with their new approach to banking may be what catapults this stock to a place where investors rejoice. Putting the early jitters aside the stock has tremendous potential according to the captain and his chief. Novogratz recently commented that he believes that the cryptocurrency markets could soon be in recovery. “………… Part of this is the anticipation of an ETF that will hopefully get approved.”

This week’s Biggest Winners in Cryptocurrencies

1) +48.95% Ravencoin (RVN) Started the week at $0.0190 Ended the week at $0.0283
2) +48.90% Request Network (REQ) Started the week at $0.0454 Ended the week at $0.0676
3) +47.16% Veritaseum (VERI) Started the week at $17.24 Ended the week at $25.37
4) +44.31% Salt Lending (SALT) Started the week at $0.562 Ended the Week at $0.811
5) +38.99% DMarket (DMT) Started the week at $0.318 Ended the week at $0.442
6) +36.81% GoCoin (GO) Started the week at $0.0326 Ended the week at $0.0446
7) +36.31% POA Network (POA) Started the week at $0.0785 Ended the week at $0.107
8) +35.80% Basic Attention Token (BAT) Started the week at $0.176 Ended the week at $0.239
9) +27.52% EthLend (LEND) Started the week at $0.0149 Ended the week at $0.0190
10) +27.28% Aeternity (AE) Started the week at $1.107 Ended the week at $1.409
11) +26.77% Cindicator (CND) Started the week at $0.0198 Ended the week at $0.0251
12) +26.32% Ambrosus (AMB) Started the week at $0.152 Ended the week at $0.192
13) +25.44% Quantstamp (QSP) Started the week at $0.0338 Ended the week at $0.0424
14) +24.55% Ethos (ETHOS) Started the week at $0.330 Ended the week at $0.411
15) +18.99% Bitcoin Interest (BCI) Started the week at $1.00 Ended the week at $1.190

Crypto Chart of the Week

Ravencoin (RVN)
Chart Courtesy of CoinlibRavencoin (RVN) ranks 93rd on the list of cryptos ordered according to their market capitalization. Ravencoin’s current market cap is $62,610,000. Ravencoin describe themselves as a use case specific blockchain designed to carry statements of truth about who owns what asset. “Ravencoin aims to implement a blockchain which is optimized specifically for the use case of transferring assets such as tokens from one holder to another” – Medium
$3,160,000 worth of Raven changed hands October 19th at an average price of $0.0307.

Upcoming ICOs

Kuende (KUE) Sale Starts October 19 Sale Ends November 2 / The social network that rewards real life interaction and enhances your wellbeing
beepnow (BPN) Sale Starts October 20 Sale Ends December 29 / A skill-sharing platform that connects “job seeker” and “job offerer” together, and allows you to execute everything, from offering a job to payment, from your smartphone
Blockpit (TAX) Sale Starts October 20 Sale Ends November 20 / A Tax Reporting and Portfolio Monitor
Vanywhere (VANY) Sale Starts October 20 Sale Ends November 10 / A live skill-sharing platform that instantly connects people seeking and offering skills, so they can get personalized results tailored just to them
Dein Anteil (DAT) Sale Starts October 21 Sale Ends January 20, 2019 / The first ecosystem of tokenized real estate and rent
Exosis (EXO) Sale Starts October 21 Sale Ends November 19 / A Masternode coin with Timetravel 10 Algo
Fiii (Fiii) Sale Starts October 21 Sale Ends December 31 / The Only mobile instant cryptocurrency payment terminal in the world to be compatible with up to 1500 cryptocurrencies
Aircraft (AIRT) Sale Starts October 22 Sale Ends December 1 / Aiming to make the use of the cryptocurrency in the tourism field affordable, as well as providing a higher level of security and quality of services in travel
BR11 (BR11) Sale Starts October 22 Sale Ends November 21 / A Security Token legally backed by equity in 11 high-growth revenue generating startups
Carmel (CARMEL) Sale Starts October 22 Sale Ends December 31 / Learn How To Build A Better Future For All Of Us
Crypto Circle X (CCX) Sale Starts October 22 Sale Ends November 26 / Powered by a superior technological algorithm that is capable of high performance trading with over 10 million transactions per second, A.I. bot, auto-trading, professional charts with technical analysis, trading alerts, and much more, in a user friendly and responsive interface or in our specially designed mobile app
EZ Exchange (EZX) Sale Starts October 22 Sale Ends December 17 / Puting traders first, ensuring that users never deal with substandard security or a poor user experience when trading cryptocurrency
Spotcoin (SPOT) Sale Starts October 22 Sale Ends October 27 / Developing a complete digital asset management toolkit
Coingrid (CGT) Sale Starts October 23 Sale Ends December 23 / Aiming to make investing in cryptocurrency as easy as sending an email
RealtyReturns (RRT) Sale Starts October 23 Sale Ends November 23 / A decentralized compliance protocol creating an industry standard for how asset-backed tokens are issued and traded on the blockchain
Coingrid (CGT) Sale Starts October 23 Sale Ends December 23 / Aiming to make investing in cryptocurrency as easy as sending an email
ASSPACE (ASP) Sale Starts October 25, 2018 Sale Ends January 1, 2019 / Intended to be the one and only cryptocurrency for driving processing and stimulating user activities in a private decentralized social network with 18+ content
EveryCoin (EYC) Sale Starts October 25 Sale Ends December 25 / A new financial platform that combines stable coin (TabiPay) with fluid value coin (EveryCoin) to solve the problems of blockchain speed and high variability of cryptocurrency
GEMERA (GEMA) Sale Starts October 25 Sale Ends December 12 / A crypto-token backed by Colombian emeralds which provide a blockchain based platform where the tokens can be redeemed for physical emeralds
Skillchain (SKI) Sale Starts October 25 Sale Ends November 24 / Certified Skills on Blockchain
Vena Network (VENA) Sale Starts October 25 Sale Ends November 5 / An open protocol for tokenized asset financing and exchange, in which everyone can process P2P cryptocurrency collateral lending and OTC trading anytime and anywhere, enabling free exchange between cryptocurrency and fiat currency
XERA (XERA) Sale Starts October 25 Sale Ends December 23 / Transforming the way cryptocurrencies are traded, offering traders and investors a seamlessly integrated solution for their cryptocurrency investing

What is the first thing that comes to your mind when you hear about blockchain technology? Is it cryptocurrency like bitcoin? Or Mining operations that require a huge cryptographic processing power for the proof of work? Or, may be, open source crypto exchange? Well, if you are aware of these assets, you should know how this technology has powered the industrial sectors and has brought innovation at the peak level. Moreover, when it comes to speedy transactions and building trust among the businesses, this technology has certainly done well in achieving this feat.

Blockchain is considered to be the next level of the distributed network system and has proved to be efficient and flexible when it comes to facilitating transactions without centralised administration or control. This technology has powered cryptocurrencies like bitcoin and Ethereum but apart from the financial sector, it can also work be well for any sector that involves peer-to-peer transactions.

This technology has taken over the task of the middleman and the central authorities by ensuring that the transactions can be audited by any of the parties that are involved in this task and has enabled a trusting mechanism between the clients by protecting them from fraudulent transactions. Although the technology is not safe entirely when it comes to coping with external threats related to security but the entire system is quite safe intrinsically.Furthermore, here are the five industries which are using blockchain to empower themselves. Also check out this post to learn more about the diverse benefits of blockchain technology.

Real Estate

Real estate is one of the most complex industries that involve a lot of participants such as agents, buyers, brokers, and sellers. Moreover, real estate transactions are quite slow and risky which is why people tend to take careful measures while investing in them.

By involving blockchain processes in the real estate processes, you can reduce the potential risks involved with them and increase the trust among clients in a lot of ways. This is because most of the people rely on known companies when it comes to purchasing homes and to verify the transactions due to which the small companies who want to establish themselves stand a poor chance in making an impact on the people. Technology can be used to carry on transactions with the help of crypto-currencies rather than the flat currencies which would help in demonstrating the option to purchase homes with the help of digital assets instead of the traditional ones.

Information Services

It is evident that with the technology becoming accessible, people can now browse through their favorite websites and extract the information which is desired. Moreover, mobile phones have made the Internet even more approachable. Because of this outrageous demand, the ranking of the websites now depends on the page-load speed which has certainly increased the competition among e-commerce businesses as well. It is estimated that blockchain technology can solve some of the major problems such as the progress of the digital content, latency, and low availability of the Internet and make the Internet experience better when it comes to browsing the websites. Enterprises are now creating a decentralized content delivery network to improve the data consumption across the world.

Banking

Some of the biggest names in the banking sector such as Goldman Sachs, Barclays are slowing changing their perspective towards the cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology and looking out for their potential benefits. In the European countries, the banking industry has taken a plunge towards the decentralized banking system. Several banks, insurance accounts, and exchanges can be reached through a single interface which is somewhat secure. Not only this, several blockchain-based platforms are now coming up with services such as e-wallets for transfer of payments – both locally and internationally which has made it easier for the people to get the desired amount in an hour of need. This has also benefited the micro-finance industries which provide the small-scale workers with the support money.

Legal Advisory

Most of the businesses in different industrial sectors now rely on digitally secure contracts so that the deals can be facilitated in real-time. Due to such technological measures, most of the law firms are now shifting towards developing online advisories for the clients and introduce them to the best ways that would help in structuring the transactions in an effective manner. Take for example, the Enterprise Ethereum Alliance which is trying to get the law firms to use the blockchain technology and has successfully added around 14 firms as the core members who are continuously working towards spreading the uses of this technology.

Online Advertising

Online advertising is rising to its peak with a large number of users going with the ad-blocking and DNDs etc. The scenario of the advertising industry is such that the advertisers are now focusing on innovative measures to garner user attention in abundance and reach out to people through various mediums. Blockchain technology has helped a lot in bringing this change in the companies be it the small-scale or established ones. Take the case of Brave browser with uses Basic Attention Token (BAT) – created by Brendan Erich who invented JavaScript. The purpose of BAT is that it allows the users to exchange ad with various companies irrespective of the Google and Facebook ad functionalities. The users who utilize this service are rewarded with BAT’s. As this entire system is consensual it can revolutionize the entire online advertising trends in the coming years.

In Conclusion

The blockchain technology isn’t only used to create bitcoin escrow service. It has proved its worth when it comes to security, efficiency, and extensibility of transactions and has left an impression of trust on the businesses which are now aiming to find the best uses of it. With this, start-ups and enterprises can realize their potential and aid the government agencies in their Fast-Track processes by ensuring maximum security. Overall, this new age technology can bring some of the major changes in which the businesses are done and is all set to play a pivotal role in their growth.

About the Author

Alex Fleming

I am a full-stack developer with 7 years of experience. I see the future in blockchain technology and I like it. The last two years I have been working in this industry. In my opinion, blockchain will transform the world in the future not only in the financial sector.

How To Avoid Airdrop Scams

With the increasing popularity or crypto airdrops and the amount of potential money (tokens) to be collected, it’s no surprise that there are many scams out there. Below are some basic rules of thumb you should follow to ensure that you secure your funds and avoid any types of spam airdrop.Unfortunately, there is a chance that the airdrops you sign up for won’t send you tokens and at the end of the day, you wasted five minutes of your time. However, what is worse is that you shared your personal information with one of these scam airdrops when you were signing up.
You may have already signed up for some and have an understanding of the information these airdrop applications generally want. You’ve probably already had a chance to see and learn how to spot a scam, but here are a few reminders for you.

Safety first with Airdrops

After signing up and reviewing many airdrops, we have gotten good at spotting scams and fakes. Some things we see scam airdrops often doing; Using the same WordPress layout as others, missing whitepapers, and fake accounts for team
members.
Just to be clear, in no way are scams the majority of airdrops. In fact, they are a small percentage of airdrops. There are plenty of remarkable airdrops out there that do an excellent job of delivering. The Steller airdrop was just that, steller. They sent 1,000 tokens to all who joined their airdrop. Later those tokens were valued at over 800 USD!
We can go all day listing off some of the best airdrops from the past, but let’s focus on how to make sound decisions when it comes to joining an airdrop you think will be the next big thing.

Never send/donate ETH or pay for an airdrop

These are the most common tactics. You will see fake Twitter pages sharing; “Donate .1-1 ETH to get free ‘xyz’ token”. These are scams so don’t let them fool you!

Do not share your private key

This is rule number one for anything crypto related. Your private key is YOURS, never share with anyone. Keep your private key safe and don’t get tricked into sharing it.

Create an airdrop dedicated email

Just about every airdrop asks for you to verify your email when signing up. Create a new email just for airdrops. It’s a smart way to monitor project updates and keep your private email secure. You can then have all your emails from that domain forwarded to your private email. Most main email providers offer this option to forward from another account.

Use different passwords

Do not use the same password on different site. Some airdrops require that you create an account on their platform and sign up with a username and password. Create a unique password for each and manage all of your passwords with a password manager. It’s a good idea to set up a tracker in a spreadsheet to keep tabs on the airdrops you’ve signed up for and the account information you used. When you’re signing up for 20+ airdrops, this will help you keep organized.

Be careful with KYC airdrops

KYC (Know Your Customer) is used for many ICO’s because they require that you share your information to participate in token sales. If you do not plan on purchasing tokens during a projects ICO, then don’t fill out any KYC for an airdrop. This will ensure you secure your private data.

Set up a new Ethereum Wallet for airdrops

Dedicating one ETH wallet to your airdrops will help you keep organized and keep your personal wallet safe. You can use MetaMask to create a new wallet and manage multiple at the same time. There isn’t much danger in sharing your public address, but having a separate address just for airdrops is a safe way to keep your personal wallet value hidden.

Always use reliable sources when doing your research

Make sure you are following links from the airdrops official pages and channels. On Twitter, you will see many “look-alike” profiles that claim to be there airdrops official page. They will use similar usernames and profile pictures. Double check every time before you click a link or share any information.
If you see what you think may be a scam account on Twitter, report it to the official airdrop channel.

Where to find airdrops?

You can find many airdrops listings on Twitter, Telegram, and many other sites. However, many of these channels are unorganized and not always reliable to use. Check out Airdrop-Review for some of the best hand-picked and reviewed airdrops. We do our best to weed out scam and list all the best airdrops we find to be exciting or having high potential.

Conclusion

As you research and look for Airdrops to sign up for, you may find a few airdrops that are worthless or scams, but you will discover many that have high potential and will be worth your time. Even though some airdrops may only be 2 – 5 USD in estimated value, there is always a chance that those same tokens can increase their value as the Crypto market get’s better.

FIVE TIPS TO IMPROVE YOUR FINANCES: A MINI GUIDE

Personal finance management is something that we don’t learn since our childhood, nor is it taught in schools. But it is something that we must learn as soon as we start growing up, as it is something we have to deal with all our lives!
Here are a few simple tips that will hopefully guide you to manage your finances.

Spend Less than You Earn

It may sound very cliché, but this is the most straightforward hack ever. You should always spend less than you earn. Most people don’t stick to this rule, but it’s very simple. For instance, you make $1000 per week, and if you spend $1200, you won’t be able to save for your future, or maybe pay your bills, get full grocery, or anything at all. It’s a lousy way to live. But sadly, life is not as simple as defined. It’s very effortless to slip in a hole without knowing it. Sometimes an unexpected car bill can make you spend extra, or sometimes you can have a surprising visitor come stay with you!
However, you can always at least plan on investing, and maybe in the more extended period, you can ask for a pay raise, or even pursue towards a higher paying job! Spending less is all about your mindset. Reducing your expenses is one of the easiest methods of sorting your finances.

Stick to Your Budget

If you do, or if you don’t have any debts, you need a budget anyway. Making a budget is more convenient than actually sticking to your budget. Many simple things that can help us keep on track. A few are:

To keep your receipts and write them down at the end of each day. It gets easier to track and calculate.

Whenever you have the urge to buy something, ask yourself, “Do I really need this?” It will help avoid compulsive buying.

Stop shopping at pricey stores. If you want a t-shirt, go to the store that offers it for $10, instead of $40.

Use every last bit of everything you use. Make sure to finish every last bit on your plate and not throw it away.

Do right amount of research before you go and buy anything important or expensive.

Always save. Take out 20% off of your salary before you make your budget and pay your bills.

Invest

If you want to be wealthy, you should invest! And you should invest early, often, and as much as you can manage. But some people don’t prefer spending to invest because they think they need a lot of money for it. That’s where people are wrong. You can start investing with as little as $20! The key is to be persistent and save wherever you can. Here are some tips that can motivate you:
– Try the cookie jar approach. Try putting whatever you have collected during the day in an envelope or a jar, and try doing it every day. Try to make this a habit, even if you have $2 at the end of the day, put it in your savings jar.
– Start from small, like index funds, betterment funds, and mutual funds.
– Later move on to real estate or dividend stocks.
– Enroll in your employer’s retirement plan. You can start with investing just 1% of your salary every month.
– Go to Bitcoin Investment Program. Bitcoin is digital currency and also has low transaction fee!

Emergency Funds

Let’s face it, unexpected financial problems can arise anytime, and it’s not easy to avoid them too. So, it’s always a good idea if we have some savings to help us when our car breaks down, or our washing machine stops working, or even if we lose our job for any reason.
Another benefit is that emergency funds also help us clear our debt. Emergency funds help you with unexpected spending so you can pay off the debts (if you have any).

Good Insurance

Insurances can be your best friend! They are always there to take care of things you didn’t plan for. Three most essential insurances everyone must have are Car-Insurance, Life Insurance and of course, Health Insurance.

Car-Insurance

Almost all states require having a minimum amount of car insurance. It provides benefits when an accident occurs, it covers lawsuits and legal fees, and it covers vehicle repair dues as well. Car insurance also include the damage caused by accidents like theft, fire, etc.

Life Insurance

First off, if you are the one who is earning for a family, or if some of your family depends on you, you need insurance because if you die without an insurance, it can create a lot of problems for the ones depending on you. These may include income issues, debts, bills, etc.
Life Insurance these days is extremely affordable, and you have the flexibility to choose any company and whatever insurance plan that suits you. You are the one who gets to decide the duration, coverage, beneficiary, etc.

Health Insurance

Health benefit is also significant when you are trying to manage your financial life. Many people say “why do we even need health insurance?” I’ll tell you why. Insurance companies are an expert on negotiating with hospitals and their crazy bills. Negotiations between doctors and hospitals are standard, and they can reduce our bill up to 50%!
When you have health insurance, you can avoid those long waits at the ER. With health insurance, you can directly go to your primary care physician, and cut the waiting line and get yourself fixed at the initial stage only. These are of course few of many benefits, but I find these convincing enough!
Hopefully, this mini guide of mine helps you to solve and sort your financial life. Happy Financing!

AUTHOR BIO:

Sarah Smith has been a personal finance author for the last five years. She is also, an independent and very passionate finance and investment advisor. She regularly posts at PersonalIncome.org

Three areas in the Banking Industry to Use Blockchain

Bitcoin is from where it all started, the craze of cryptocurrencies. Since 2017, it has been in full swing as Bitcoin rose to immense heights. The technology underlying Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies is blockchain that might have popularized because of Bitcoin craze but now holds great value in itself that can transform the various industries especially banking and finance.
The traditional global banking system has a lot to benefits from the implementation of the blockchain technology. The key features of blockchain that is decentralization, cost-effectiveness, efficiency, transparency, and security can provide the necessary support to the payments, settlements and even compliance elements of banks.
The immutability and shared transaction history that means once something is recorded after being agreed upon via consensus, it can’t be altered which can facilitate the banking processes.
However, blockchain and banking services have somewhat of a complex relationship as on one hand it can transform the way value is exchanged while offering numerous opportunities as mentioned above to the financial industry. On the other hand, the technology is also viewed as a potential threat to the existing system the banking industry runs on.
Ripple is one of the active cryptocurrencies used in the banking sector. Its various products like RipleNet, xRapid and xVia are built with the sole purpose to target the time and cost efficiency factor lacking in this sector. It has even partnered up and tested their technology with big names like Santander Bank.
However, Banks are not only using the blockchain solutions provided by others, they are developing their own blockchain platform and digital currencies as well. These kinds of projects are aimed towards reducing the cost, time and capital involved in the clearing and settlement process. Apart from enhancing the speed and efficiency of different payment and settlement systems, the objective is also to improve the overall financial market efficiency.
Change is never easy and it certainly takes time but the way banks and financial services are coming together and leveraging the blockchain technology, it’s just a matter of when and how these institutional will make it happen.

Faster Settlement Time

Digital payments have become quite common today though trusting the involved parties is still a risk. Intermediary financial services are there but it slows down the process, more so when it comes to cross-border payment settlements.
Here blockchain provides an amazing solution that allows all the participants to view the same updated and immutable ledger. It doesn’t require days to make the changes in different ledgers rather blockchain streamlines the process allowing for more direct transactions while making them faster, simpler and of course more secured.

Identification of Customers

Know-your-customer (KYC) compliance is an essential function performed by banks and financial institutions to eliminate the risk of money laundering and terrorist financing. Usually, this process involves documentation and heavy paperwork. Moreover, it also consists of understanding the nature of activities to ensure its legitimacy and assessing if the customer does possess risk.
Keeping this information updated for different types of financial services is a difficult task that can be resolved by blockchain solution. The cryptographic protection provided by this technology secures customer information while providing the option to share the updated records with multiple parties. This not only simplifies the administrative process but reduces the duplication of information.

Disharmony in Global Market

The traditional financing practices involving lending, factoring, insuring among other activities along with friction in the global market makes completing the trades and obtaining finances a complex and lengthy process. The involvement of paper documents further means these procedures can take weeks to complete even a single transaction.
Blockchain help in streamlining the trade finance by allowing the trade partners to interact and transact with greater trust while saving the time and cost involved in the trade process.
The technology giant, IBM is already working on a blockchain that can be used by banks for a variety of uses. A number of banks have already joined IBM in its initiative.
Banks are increasingly getting involved as numerous blockchain-related patents have been filed by big names in the financial industry. The increased efficiency and transparency coupled with reduced cost and simplified processes have banks around the world looking to transform this sector through blockchain.

About the Author

Ankit Saxena: A computer science engineer, I have been adamantly following the blockchain and cryptocurrency industry for the past few years. A crypto enthusiast and hardcore blockchain follower. My expertise extends to content marketing and advertising through which I was able to help few notable startups. For more follow me on my site Coingape

Different Types of Blockchains Present in the Market

It all started with the introduction of a white paper called “a peer-to-peer electronic cash system” in 2008 by someone named Satoshi Nakamoto. When bitcoin came into the world, it required a structure to run on that resulted in the creation of Blockchain technology.
The blockchain is basically an underlying structure on which a digital currency runs. It basically allows everyone on the ledger to reach a consensus while eliminating the need to trust anyone.
As the hype around bitcoin rose, companies and governments started evaluating the cryptocurrency and its underlying technology that made blockchain so much popular that many believed it to be the real deal in the crypto world.
This technology comprises of a list of records that are known as blocks which keep on growing on a constant basis. These blocks are linked with each other and further secured through cryptography. Usually, each of these blocks contains a cryptographic hash function of the previous block along with the transaction data and a timestamp.

Types of Blockchain

Over the last few years, blockchain has evolved a lot and the idea is that the blockchain can be used for any kind of transaction or agreement.
Typically, it can be now divided into three major types viz: Public Blockchain, Private Blockchain, and Federated Blockchain.Public/Permissionless Blockchain
As the name suggests, this kind of blockchain is open to the public. Anyone can participate here as a node. The most common and popular examples are Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Litecoin. Anyone can start mining these crypto coins, make a transaction on its blockchain or review it.
Being transparent and open to everyone, these blockchains can be reviewed by anyone at any given time.
No one is the in charge here. Then you must be thinking how exactly a decision is made? Right! The decision is made through various decentralized consensus mechanisms like Proof of Stake (POS) and Proof of Work (POW).
This permissionless blockchain has the potential to disrupt the currently existing business models by eliminating the need for an intermediary. Moreover, these blockchains don’t require any infrastructure costs either as there is no need to maintain a system or servers.

Private/Permissioned Blockchain

As the name implies these are private blockchains meaning they are owned by an organization or an individual. Banks among other private institutions utilize the key idea of blockchain that is the distributed ledger technology to create their very own private blockchain.
Unlike its public counterpart, private blockchain has an in charge that manages everything related to this blockchain. The consensus here is achieved by the individual or organization that is controlling the network.
Using the term blockchain here is not quite the right thing to do as it is for the most part centralized which clearly defy the idea with which the blockchain was created. However, from the point of view of the company, it is certainly cost effective and more secured.
Though this kind of blockchain is extremely beneficial in solving the fraud, security and efficiency issues that the financial institutions have to face, it doesn’t have the potential to transform the financial system that the public blockchain certainly has.

Federated/ Consortium Blockchain

These blockchains are basically under the control of a group that uses the private blockchains. Here, sole autonomy is removed by including particular people or organizations into it.
When it comes to controlling the blockchain, you would find a number of in charges instead of simply one or no one. Here, a particular group of representatives or organizations come together that makes all the decisions for the benefit of the network as a whole.
For instance, EWR and R3 utilize federated blockchain where only the members of this consortium can mine, make transactions or review the blockchain. These are mostly used in the banking sector.
This blockchain helps in reducing the data redundancies and transaction costs while being faster and offering higher scalability.
The use of blockchains is growing at a rapid pace that doesn’t show any sign of slowing down in the near future. From finance, automobile to energy, the blockchain is transforming every sector.
If you have any queries or want to share your thoughts on blockchain, its uses and how it is changing the economic scenario, feel free to comment below!

About the Author

Ankit Saxena: A computer science engineer, I have been adamantly following the blockchain and cryptocurrency industry for the past few years. A crypto enthusiast and hardcore blockchain follower. My expertise extends to content marketing and advertising through which I was able to help few notable startups. For more follow me on my site Coingape

Top TedX talks on blockchain you can’t miss!

Cryptocurrency and blockchain have been around for some time now but how these two technologies work is still mystery for many. The team at https://coingape.com/ has filtered the top 5 TedX talks on blockchain and cryptocurrency that will help you understand these technologies in a better way. What better than to hear from experts themselves to understand these complex topics?
Cryptocurrencies are certainly the pulsing point but blockchain is a “foundation technology” that everyone from governments, banks, financial institutions to big brands is interested in learning about and exploring its potential.
Amidst the chaos and crave of cryptocurrencies, let’s talk blockchain today. Shall we!
Cryptocurrencies are certainly the pulsing point but blockchain is a “foundation technology” that everyone from governments, banks, financial institutions to big brands is interested in learning about and exploring its potential.
So, we are going to talk about the top 5 blockchain Ted talks that will not only help you understand this concept but will give you the deep insights of blockchain directly from the minds of the experts.

“How the Blockchain will radically transform the economy” by Bettina Warburg

The first ted talk on our list is by Bettina Warburg who is a blockchain researcher that talks about how blockchain can change everything. Pretty wide and dramatic but interesting and true. Warburg gives a clear explanation of this confused technology by describing in detail how blockchain will eliminate the traditional institutions like banks that are basically centralized. Just what we needed, right!
She focuses on the interesting concepts of this technology including transparency, autonomy and its distributed facet.

“How the Blockchain is changing money and business” by Don Tapscott

A digital strategist by profession, Don Tapscott in his ted talk gives you the extended version of what exactly blockchain is. A detailed clarification on the blockchain technological facts and how it really works. That is the tough part. We might have an idea or understand this technology but its working is a different game altogether and this is where this Tedx gives you that knowledge.
And, let’s be honest, we are all in when it comes to money! Describing blockchain as the second generation of internet, he covers its potential to transform the money, government and even society.

“The future of Money” by Neha Narula

Oh! The charm of money. Mixed with Blockchain. Neha Narula in her “The future of Money” ted talk gives you the answer to the “question” what happens we change the way we buy and sell or pay or as a matter of fact removes the banks from that chain. Interesting isn’t it!
The basis of bitcoin and ethereum is a decentralized payment structure, eliminating the middlemen like banks. We are surely not there, yet! But Narula gives us a picture that defines this future in clarity.

In this Ted talk, Rachel Botsman will be talking to you about changing the concept of trust. Given that Botsman is an expert on trust and collaboration enabled by digital technologies, she sure talks a detailed and factual scenario.
She explains how people put their trust in technologies like blockchain and platforms like Airbnb which are more often than not are total strangers. This shift from traditional financial institutions brings forth an inclusive, transparent and accountable economy.

Here, the speaker Paul Kemp-Robertson takes us through a currency that has the same marketing support but which is on behalf of a private brand. The mix of marketing with currency is an interesting tangent that tells us how banks and governments make them trustworthy to us.
He surely packed a punch by getting us to meet the future of currencies that are non-bank with some great examples as well.
Blockchain technology is an interesting concept that is revolutionary not only in terms of finances but overall to the society.
So, if you want to know more or go in-depth, check out these Tedx on the blockchain.

About the Author

Ankit Saxena: A computer science engineer, I have been adamantly following the blockchain and cryptocurrency industry for the past few years. A crypto enthusiast and hardcore blockchain follower. My expertise extends to content marketing and advertising through which I was able to help few notable startups. For more follow me on my site Coingape

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